118 SIDELINES MARCH 2012
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
Catching up: Josh Hall, DVM
is back on the scene
in Wellington looking after
Tommy Lee Jones
and the
Ganzi’s
polo strings. When Josh is not in Florida, you
can find him practicing his trade in Santa Barbara.
Yikes! By now, you’ve probably heard that there
is a horse virus out in California that has brought all
equestrian activity to a screeching halt. We learned that
one of
Domingo Questal’s
horses died from the virus.
Apparently the virus was brought in by horses at the
rodeo grounds at El Dorado. It is airborne and most
games and activities have been cancelled.
Polo will officially become a discipline of the
U.S.
Pony Club
during the 2012 USPC Annual Meeting and
Convention next week in New Orleans! In celebration of
this special partnership, the USPA plans to offer a free
introductory membership to Pony Club members and is
currently working with its member clubs and other polo
entities to offer educational clinics this year for Pony
Club chapters located around the country. For more
info, contact
Ryan Boger
at 919-277-1166.
California will be hosting an “Arena Legends”
tournament in California in conjunction with
Randy
Russell
and
Polo America Events
.....more info to
follow!
Team USPA member
Mason Wroe
made his high-
goal debut in a big way, earning an MVP nod in the
opening weekend of the 20-goal at IPC. Way to go
Mason!
Houston’s
Jeff Hildebrand
will be taking his first
plunge into high-goal polo, taking his Tonkawa Farms
team to IPC to play his first season of 20-goal polo!
Good luck Jeff!
Preliminary Discussions have begun for a spring re-
match of the
England vs. USA Townsend Cup
, with
the English acting as host.
Bumps ands bruises:
Polo Editor
Danika Rice
is
recovering from surgery after a spill with a polo pony
in Houston. The horse tripped and fell with her foot still
in the stirrup, breaking both the tibia and fibula bones
feeding into her ankle. Two plates and 7 screws later,
the healing process has begun! This all came a week
after brother
Shane
took a tumble during the opening
rounds of the 8-goal at Sarasota Polo Club. Shane fared
better, sporting only a bum knee and some impressive
bruises.
Chad Bowman
also took a tumble during chukkers
in Houston’s winter season arena polo........he suffered
only a fat lip, so best get to paying up on his case of
beer to ease the swelling!
Stay up-to-date with the latest happenings of the
winter high-goal season...even when you can’t be
there!
IPCscoreboard.com
is a new website from the
International Polo Club
that will feature real-time
updates, scores, stats and photos from Florida!
Mark your calendars: American Polo Horse
Association’s National Polo Pony Show returns to West
Palm Beach, Florida; Tuesday March 27, once again at
A
S
I
D
E
S
the Jim Brandon Equestrian center.
Fun fact: APHA 2011 “most searched” horse of the year was
Mariah
, owned by California’s
Domingo Questal
.
New baby department: Del Walton
and longtime girlfriend
Tessa Lord
have welcomed their second child, another son,
Robert Callaghan Walton,
into the world!
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the
Avendano
Memorial Junior Polo tournament
. If you have long
memories (or photos, perhaps) contact Haley Bryan, who’s
working on putting together the history of this memorable
tournament. The editor remembers when Julio Arellano and
the Novillo-Astrada boys played in it – and it was an amazing
game that year. Most of the kids who played in that match are
now high goalers!
The Equestrian Celebrity Bartending Challenge
to benefit
the YMCA of the Palm Beaches took place in mid-January 21st
at
The Gallery Lounge, International Arena
, Palm Beach
International Equestrian Center. Polo players
Kris Kampsen,
Nic Roldan
(voted one of Vanity Fair’s Hottest Horseman),
Brandon Phillips
(also a model) and
Pelon Escapite
were
among the bartenders. Show jumpers
Georgina Bloomberg,
Marley Goodman, Paige Johnson, Daisy Johnson, Tiffany
Foster, Whitney Weeks
and dressage rider
Devon Kane
also doled out the drinks in this popular fundraiser.
Passing:
the Aiken polo family lost a fine young man in
Austin Allen
. Austin was a sweet good natured athlete who
played polo on the Aiken Interscholastic team as well as other
tournaments. His polite demeanor, ready smile and sweet
soul will be missed by all of us.
News to share: New baby, engagement, pickup truck? On
the move, having parties, falling off horses? Share what’s
happenin’ with your polo friends by e-mailing us at editor@
sidelinesnews.com. Be sure to put “News for Asides” in the
subject line.
Miss Florida USA Karina Brez and Lauren Duffy, Asst. VP of
Piaget along with the Stanley Cup on loan from the National
Hockey League made an appearance at IPC in January
Photo by Alan Fabricant